$100 Bet on Syracuse Win Could Pay $100K

In an incredible run that SB Nation says "doesn't make sense" and Sports Illustrated labels "improbable," Syracuse beat No. 1 seed Virginia 68-62 on Sunday, the AP reports—making the Orange the first No. 10 seed to make it to the Final Four. And one bettor is now making a Las Vegas bookie sweat, as ESPN puts it, holding a ticket purchased for $100 on Jan. 13 (when odds against 'Cuse were 1,000-to-1) that could be worth $100,100 if Syracuse goes all the way. The same gambler bought two other "Go, Syracuse!" tickets from Westgate SuperBook when the team dropped to 500-to-1 odds. All three tickets are now for sale for $6,069 on a secondary-market site—which may be a smart move, as a Westgate VP says he can't recall a 1,000-to-1 wager ever cashing out in his 20-plus years in the business. (Could this Buddhist monk be holding the big ticket?)